Peter Pays Paul

Last week I spent 5 days 8 hours a day in the CCIM 101 course. It was quite an investment of time (and money).

It was worth every penny and minute.

The CCIM course is not for those that are mathematically challenged. (If you hate math, this course will be a challenge.) Much of the course is theoretical and analytical. It is also entirely practical.

The theory and analysis apply to real world situations.

What does CCIM 101 cover?

In the course we reviewed discounting and compounding cash flows, net present value, amortization, and a number of other financial calculations. You will become very familiar with your calculator during the week. (CCIM recommends the HP 10bII Financial Calculator and provides many of the keystrokes in the class text.)

The course briefly covers time value of money, appraisal, taxation, and provides two case studies to bring the calculations and theories to real world scenarios.

You will learn the difference between cap rates, cash on cash returns, internal rates of return (IRR), and capital accumulation and how to calculate each one.

Who should take CCIM 101?

I would recommend this course to commercial real estate professionals that want to provide an advisory service to their clients.

This course can add tremendous value to your clients. It will help you to competently evaluate competing investments and financing scenarios. Then you can advise your client on which is a best fit for their stated investment goals.

This is a great course for leasing agents, sales agents, commercial mortgage brokers, and real estate investors.

What did I take away?

I value CCIM 101 because it is not only, useful now as a hard money lender, but I can use it in my own real estate investments.

I will most likely use this in the short term for discounted note purchases. The discounting calculations will allow me to provide an adequate return on any notes that we buy as a result of the credit crisis.

The instructors were great. They came from different locals in North America and brought a breadth of backgrounds. They were able to convey the material with authority and wisdom that only comes from years of experience.

The NY Times has an interesting article on the California town of Mountain House that sprang up during the housing boom. The first homes were sold in 2003 and according to the article 90% are underwater on their mortgages.

Read the Article

The NY Times also has a map of the locations where homes are worth less than their mortgages.

Interactive Graphic – NYTimes.com.